Generosity: How Much is Enough?

July 28, 2011

Craig Bida brings more than 20 years of experience spanning the private, public and nonprofit sectors – successfully partnering with companies, government agencies and nonprofits to drive business growth, while addressing pressing societal needs and currently serves as executive vice president of cause branding and nonprofit marketing at Cone. At the 2011 Cause Marketing Forum, Cone led two Powerful Discussion sessions titled, Generosity: How Much is Enough?, on determining cause investment levels. During the sessions, we explored Cone’s 10 Factors that Influence Your Investment in a Cause, critical variables we have identified to guide partners in determining the right level of support.

When building a new cause program, one of the fundamental questions companies and nonprofits alike confront is: What dollar amount should we commit to our social goals? This simple question has a not-so-simple answer: It depends. We advise organizations to resist the rush to pick a number. Instead, organizations should do a comprehensive self-assessment to decide whether to make a small, moderate or large investment. Cone’s 10 Factors are also useful for nonprofits that have their own cause programs or are looking to partner with corporations because savvy companies collaborate with their nonprofit partners to determine the level of investment needed to make a true impact.

During the sessions, we also explored several critical insights around other opportunities for increased corporate-nonprofit collaboration.

A key takeaway was that, in an age of declining consumer trust, companies increasingly need trusted nonprofits to help them demonstrate and communicate their commitment to values and impact. Said otherwise, the credentialing power of nonprofits and their ability to direct resources against societal needs are becoming more and more valuable to companies integrating corporate responsibility into business strategies.

So how can potential suitors create cause-based relationships that last? Start by understanding the fundamentals of successful partnership development:

Proactivity: Anticipating how a partner can solve the other party’s needs;

Understanding: If parties don’t understand the basics/fundamentals of their potential partner’s business, this can be an immediate turn-off and destroy credibility;

Self-Valuation: Nonprofits who show up without a clear sense of what they offer and what this is worth to corporations immediately lose respect; remember that more sophisticated nonprofits are demonstrating leadership in this way by showing up prepared; and,

Negotiation: Parties should prepare to negotiate up-front based on the current and future value they bring and then reassess later to ensure that value is being shared fairly by each partner.

We see leadership organizations consistently leveraging these fundamentals to build their reputation and establish a track record of being good, fair partners. Given the increasingly important role partnerships will play in the future, spending the time to think through these is a solid investment that is sure to pay future dividends.

It turns out there is so much more at the root of generosity than just a number.

What is your experience, either as a company or cause, in setting the “right” amount via a cause partnership?